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Inyo Film Journal No. 119 |
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Friday, 10 August 2007 |
By Chris Langley
Inyo County Film Commission
Changing film formats (sound), changing audience tastes and age and injury all helped Hoot Gibson travel the road from super stardom to “has been,” as did so many other Western stars of the heyday of early Westerns.
Among his many extravagant and daredevil activities in his life and career, Gibson was a real flying enthusiast. His peer Ken Maynard was also into flying in a big way and both had the money early in their careers to support the new fad. It was not uncommon for Hoot to fly up to location in Lone Pine in his new plane.
In 1933 it was this avocation that nearly cost him his life and probably undermined his career as well. In 1930, thanks to the Depression and the Laemmles (father and son), Maynard and Hoot Gibson’s contracts had not been renewed. It was a shock to Hoot. He had been at Universal for 13 years. It had been both a creative and lucrative partnership, but Westerns were considered unreliable as profit-makers at the studio.
After his termination, Hoot looked around for work and no outstanding offers were forthcoming. Independent producer M. H. Hoffman made an offer and Gibson ultimately made 11 pictures for Allied. In retrospect, it was not the best decision. In 1933, he was offered the opportunity to return to Universal, but when he attempted to make the move, Hoffman had a contract that led him to initiate legal proceedings against Hoot. The legal wrangling that followed kept Gibson off the screen for nearly a year.
Gibson had entered the National Air Races the same year. While flying he had an accident that nearly killed him. He was in the hospital for months and when he finally was ready to return, Hoffman’s legal action interfered. By the time he was clear of injury and obligation, Universal had signed Buck Jones instead at $1,000 a week. Unfortunately for Hoot, the crash had also left permanent damage to his spine which resulted in a permanent limp and curtailed his action stunts that had made him so popular throughout his career.
As far as his work in Lone Pine during this period, he made only a few pictures. In 1930 he made two pictures locally, some of the last he made for Universal. “Points West” was released in June of 1929, and was one of the last of his silent films. No copy is known to exist at this time. Then two sound films followed quickly: “Trailin’ Trouble” in March of 1930, and “Spurs” in August of the same year. His work for Universal in the area was over. “Trailin’ Trouble” is interesting because it is one of the few times Gibson, while not abandoning his general comic approach, did abandon the West. The first half of the film is in Lone Pine, the second half has him going to New York on the train.
After his legal problems and the plane crash, Gibson’s life and career never really recovered. Hoffman sold his contract with Gibson to First National and he was to complete three films for them. His old friend John Ford got him signed on with RKO for two films and these turned out to be classics using the trio of characters that would be used as a formula for Republic’s “Three Mesquiteers” series. In fact, Gibson was hired to be a member of the “Trail Blazers” series in the ’40s, along with Ken Maynard and Bob Baker.
Gibson made one final picture for Diversion-Grand National in Lone Pine. “Lucky Terror” was released on Feb. 20, 1936 and his local career was finished. When his film offers dried up, Gibson did as so many others had done: he joined the “sawdust trail” and began touring with Russell Bros. Circus. Three years touring were followed by his business enterprise of “Hoot Gibson’s Trading Post” in Los Angeles. While working various state fairs and rodeo appearances in 1942, Hoot met Dorothy Dunstan and they fell in love. Through the hard times and good, the couple remained together for the rest of Gibson’s life.
Several business attempts, including a restaurant and rodeo, fizzled and he made very limited appearances in films, mostly thanks to friends. He appeared in Ken Murray’s “The Marshal’s Daughter” in 1953, and in “The Horse Soldiers” directed by old friend John Ford in 1960.
Summing up his sentimental biography of Hoot Gibson, Mario DeMarco writes, “A few other unimportant jobs followed and then the final ‘countdown.’” Gibson contracted terminal cancer and ended up in Southern Nevada Memorial Hospital in 1960.
DeMarco continues, “While down on his luck and in poor health, he never whimpered or complained. His last remarks in the hospital were, ‘I don’t cry. I guess we’ll eat.’ On Aug. 23, 1963 he passed away, broke and humble. But he had carved his niche in the Western Hall of Fame.”
Throughout his career, Hoot Gibson worked locally several times. He always played the happy-go-lucky character in more than 210 westerns with lots of action before the screen grew dark. He was someone who brought on some bad times near the end of his life for himself, but he didn’t seem to have regrets. He was well-liked by the people in Lone Pine and played the same role in real life here that he played on the screen.
(Langley can be reached by phone at 760-937-1189 or by e-mail at
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Last Updated ( Friday, 22 February 2008 )
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